SLIDERS - "Pilot" (1995)

 How can a TV show be on for five years, and you don't even know about it until some twenty years later, a friend in Germany (Lord Litter) tells you about it?

It's a Saturday Night Special in The Dungeon, that's how!

This is what smart guys do in the classroom!

 This is what smart guys do at home!

 From what I've seen so far, "Sliders" looks to be a fairly unique production, and from what Lord Litter has told me, it just gets better!

 Jerry O'Connell is Quinn Mallory! He's come a long way since "Stand By Me!"

Quinn has created/discovered a portal to other dimensions. Not merely a time traveling device, this thing can transport him to worlds unheard of, and it does!

The greatest thing about this show is there are virtually no limitations!

They can get away with anything, and they do!

 Whooaooahhh! Help Mr. Wizard!!

Quinn is joined by his female friend Wade Welles (Sabrina Lloyd), and his Professor, Maximilian Arturo (John Rhys-Davies) on his journeys

 Cleavant (Off Beat) Derricks is the washed up lead singer Rembrandt Brown, of the soul group "The Spinning Tops." Known as "The Crying Man,"

 Rembrandt just got sucked up into the whole trip by mistake!

 There is just way too much going on in this story for me to detail places and characters.

This dimension is completely frozen over, and not much fun!

 The gang think they finally make it back home to San Francisco, but this statue of Lincoln is now Lenin, so it doesn't take long to figure out something ain't right!

Wade tries to make a phone call from this phone booth, and the next thing she knows, the authorities are after her!

  This Kalifornia Über Alles dimension is dark and dismal, and "The Crying Man" has no idea what the Hell is going on!

 The writers seem to have a lot of wit and imagination, especially when they do things like write Judge Wapner of "The People's Court" fame into this otherworldly scene!

 Joseph Wapner was on "The People's Court" from 1981 to 1993. He just passed away a couple of years ago at the age of 97! What a guy!

 I think they call it "Sliders" because when they are moving from one dimension to another, it's like being on a big psychedelic water slide! 

Yeehaw!!

 And just in time, they miraculously pop out back home again!

The celebratory wine glass gets thrown against the wall when it's discovered that even though it looked like they were exactly where they came from, there are some aspects they finally notice that are just not the same, and they realize it's not over!

Of course not, they've got four more seasons to go! 

Now to find the time!

MOCKINGBIRD LANE - "Unaired Pilot" (2012)

Today's Saturday Night Special falls a little short in the "Special" department, in fact, I didn't really enjoy it much at all. I don't know whose brilliant idea it was to remake The Munsters as completely different characters, and I'm too lazy to look it up, because I really just don't care!

It's called "Mockingbird Lane" and is either a TV movie or a failed pilot from the year 2012, depending on who you talk to. Either way, it's probably really something that just should have never happened.

The best part of the forty minutes is imagery like this!

This is the house that's for sale at 1312 Mockingbird Lane, and Marilyn Munster is there to look at it.

But what she really likes and wants is the dilapidated olde mansion across the street at 1313 Mockingbird Lane, an address we're all familiar with.

She's told by the realtor that the house is scheduled for demolition and, and is not for sale, but she ends up getting her way.

They do a fake out at first, and Herman is standing in front of a hanging deal that makes him look like he has the standard Frankie electrodes in his neck, but when he steps away, we see he looks pretty much like a normal guy, except with severe stitching on his neck.

Jerry (Stand By Me) O'Connell is Herman Munster. Jerry was also the star of the cool TV show called "Sliders."

British actress Charity (Burlesque Fairytales) Wakefield has the role of Marilyn Munster, and is probably the best character in the show!

1313 Mockingbird Lane needs a little TLC!

 Lilly Munster makes a rather flamboyant entrance!

 The very lovely Portia (Dead & Breakfast) de Rossi has the role of Lily Munster. 

Calm down boys, Portia is the wife of Ellen DeGeneres.

 

Eddie (Across The Universe) Izzard has the role of Grandpa, so you can see the problem is not a lack of talent!

Somebody's at the door!

 

The whole premise of the story is that little Eddie is maturing, and Lily has to try and explain to him that he is a werewolf. Eddie had no memory of it, but at the very beginning of the show, he appears to slaughter his whole boy scout troop while on a camping field trip. Eddie Munster is played by Mason (The Lone Ranger) Cook.

The shots of the house are always great!

It's fairly traumatic for Eddie to know that he is a werewolf, especially since he wants to be a vegetarian.

 

Grandpa shows his true colours in the end, and......

.........Eddie gets a dog to make him happy!

SPACE PRECINCT - "Double Duty" (1994)

This Saturday Night Special is once again a tip from my German correspondent, crazed DJ, and all around good guy, Lord Litter! I'm not quite sure how he keeps on finding them for me, but he does, and tonight it's the 1994 British TV show "Space Precinct."

I thought this episode titled "Double Duty" was the first episode, but as it turns out, it's actually the fourth episode!

"Space Precinct" is a cop show set in the year 2040, just a little over 20 years from now. Some of the police officers are human like American actor Ted (353 combined episodes of Dallas and Knots Landing as Gary Ewing) Shackelford as Lt. Patrick Brogan, and........

.......Another American actor, Rob (Sliders) Youngblood as Officer Jack Haldane, 

and....

.....Danish actress Simone (Mary, Mother Of Jesus) Bendix as Officer Jane Castle!!!

Most of the rest of the officers in the precinct look like this!

The fun part about "Space Precinct" is that it was created by Gerry Anderson of "Thunderbirds," "Terrahawks," and "Stingray" fame, and it looks great because of it!

I don't know who to thank for how cool "Space Precinct" looks, the colorists, the model makers, or the special effects technicians, probably all of them, but this is just fun to look at!

It's just eye candy!

And it works when they mix this with the 'live' action!

They could have dispensed with the story and it would have been fine with me!

But since they didn't, this grub pizza is what you have to look forward to in 21 years! Maybe we'll get lucky, and they'll start doing it even sooner!

Yum---Mee!

The pizza delivery guy is Idris (Heimdall, The Guardian of Asgard) Elba, in only his second appearance on TV! Idris is one busy guy these days, and has five or six things in pre or post-production!

As cartoonish as it is, "Space Precinct" also has some space horror going on.

The creature effects makeup was some of the early work of animatronics designer Richard Gregory who just passed away a few months ago....

................And special effects technician Phillip (Avatar) Sharpe.

All is not what it seems!  

Lana Citron in the last of her four credits morphs into something you don't want to trifle with!

This Thing!
"Space Precinct" went on for a full 24 episode season, so I'm sure I'll be back with more some day!
Ta Ta for now!